Thanks Matthew! That’s a great question. It sounds like Farm Aid has raised $85 million since 1985. While that’s a big number, it is a small drop in comparison to the amount deployed by the federal farm safety net (for comparison, the federal farm safety net has distributed more than $429 billion since 1998). I imagine that there are different criteria for distribution and impact on public perception between private charity and federal programs — but in the big scheme of things, the federal farm safety net operates on a completely different scale.
Well done! Farm Aid Festival has been running 40 years. What impact or distortion do charity orgs like this have on farmers and farm policy (bills)?
Thanks Matthew! That’s a great question. It sounds like Farm Aid has raised $85 million since 1985. While that’s a big number, it is a small drop in comparison to the amount deployed by the federal farm safety net (for comparison, the federal farm safety net has distributed more than $429 billion since 1998). I imagine that there are different criteria for distribution and impact on public perception between private charity and federal programs — but in the big scheme of things, the federal farm safety net operates on a completely different scale.
Another well written explainer - thank you Ariel!
Thank you Jennifer!